From the Cusp of Autumn
by Tyoro Dwin'tlithar
Summary: Sesshoumaru waits and watches as time goes by


From the Cusp of Autumn

He sat in the shade beneath the leaves of Goshinboku. He came and sat there every year at the very cusp of autumn just as the leaves began to turn. He had done this for many years and he really couldn't tell you why really, he just did. He watched as the leaves turned and fell from the trees and snow began to fall when he returned to the West. When spring came he remembered with each meadow he took rest in. Soon years passed and the seasons seemed to blur together, still he came to sit in the shade beneath the leaves of the Goshinboku to watch as autumn turned to winter.

Soon the forests began to fall and buildings took their places, each becoming taller as the years passed. The Goshinboku still stood tall and strong and now he hid within its boughs, unable to sit in the shade beneath its leaves. Now the air wasn't so clean and the smell wasn't so pleasant. He watched as the world changed around him and returned to the West when the snows began to fall.

He stood in time, his face unchanging. His eyes, though, were not as cold as they once were. The eyes, they say, are the windows to the soul and his was a weary one. Youkai, who were once as numerous as the ningen, weren't anymore. He was one of the few still alive. They had to adapt to the changing world around them and hid amongst the humans. Only the strongest, smartest, and most willing to adapt continued to exist. The rest were too stubborn, lacking the intelligence and the resources to survive, resulting in them being hunted down. Though through all of the changes he witnessed, he still came to hide within the boughs of Goshinboku at the cusp of autumn to watch as autumn fell to winter.

They now began to build around the Goshinboku and the forest was once more cut down, buildings taking their place. Over the years there was a small building built around the Bone Eater's Well. A shrine along with a hut that had changed over the years was passed down through the generations. He knew that soon he would see her again. He felt an emotion well up within his breast that he couldn't place, even with all his knowledge he didn't know what to call it. He watched and felt the emotions in the boughs of the Goshinboku at the cusp of autumn till the snows of winter.

Now, he looked only a little older despite the many years that passed. His hair was still long, his eyes still golden as the sun, and he still bore the markings of his clan. His power didn't dwindle over the years. Instead they grew and became like the earth, steady and solid, murmuring beneath his skin. He still waited. He visited the Goshinboku at the cusp of autumn, hiding within the boughs until the snows of winter. It had been four-hundred and ninety-two years.

She now quickened within her mother's womb. The wait was almost over and he watched as her mother grew with her. Soon she would be born. His waiting was growing closer to its end, so close he ached. Hidden within the boughs of Goshinboku, autumn came to a close and winter began its reign, but now he found he was reluctant to leave. He decided not to and jumped from the aged tree, hiding within the forest that had been preserved behind it.

He watched as she grew, so much like the one he watched long ago. She was a beautiful child. Gorgeous ebony waves graced her head and extraordinary blue eyes peaked out mischievously from beneath her bangs. Her face was petite and always smiling. Tragedy struck and wiped the smile that he had come to enjoy from her face. Her father had died leaving behind her, her brother, her mother, and her grandfather. It had been five-hundred and one years that he watched and waited.

She became older still, beautiful and full of life. The day finally came when she first entered the feudal era, when she was first attacked by Mistress Centipede. He ached at his inability to act upon his desire to help her. He knew he must not interfere. He clenched his fists in anger at his inability to help until he felt wetness against his skin. He looked down at his hands, opening them. He drew blood. He knew she would be alright, but that didn't help.

He waited as the days he didn't see her went by. The time was so very close, he could almost taste it, touch it. His body wished to move forward yet he couldn't. It wasn't time yet. It always was not time "yet" and he wished it wasn't so. He wished it wasn't so much that it hurt. He knew it was soon and that was all that helped. He waited five-hundred and nine years. He could wait a few more.

It was five-hundred and twelve years. The well had been closed six months and yet he didn't know why he hadn't done anything. She became a powerful and beautiful woman. She was outside, sitting in front of the well house, crying again. He finally went to her. He could no longer stand it and whatever held him back the past few months was no longer strong enough to deter him. She looked up when he appeared before her. He surprised her because she was not expecting him.

"Sesshoumaru…" His name was like a whisper across her lips, so silent he almost missed it. He finally came to know why he had been waiting and watching for so long.

"Kagome." He, Sesshoumaru, loves _her_, Kagome.


End file.
